Song:I-Yi
Album:The Cosimo Matassa Story
When most music fans think of The Hawks, they think of the Canadian band that started out backing up Ronnie Hawkins and later became The Band. That's not who these guys are. The Hawks were a New Orleans gospel group that recorded some doo wop singles for Dave Bartholomew. Unfortunately, they weren't successful. But you can get I-Yi and plenty of other New Orleans R & B classics on this 4CD budget box set dedicated to the career of legendary New Orleans studio owner and recording engineer Cosimo Matassa. Without Matassa, there is no Dave Bartholomew, Fats Domino or any other New Orleans R & B legends. The Hawks started out as the gospel group The Humming Four in the 30s. Original members were Albert Veal, John Henry Morris, Paul Exhano and Sam Tophia. They toured the south in the 30s and 40s. All kinds of guys went through The Humming Four including Edward "Pastor" Thomas who recorded later with The Fairfield Four. When Albert Veal was discharged from The Navy in 1947, he reformed The Humming Four with John Morris and Joseph Gaines. Their weekly radio show got the attention of Wonder Records owner Victor Augustine. He recorded them at Cosimo Matassa's J & M Studio and released a single as The Famous Four. Producer Dave Bartholomew liked what he heard and asked them to record for Imperial. First they released a single as The Famous Four. Then they recorded some singles including I-Yi as The Hawks. I think Gaines is the lead singer. It's pretty good New Orleans R & B. None of their singles charted and by 1958 they returned to gospel. You can get I-Yi on some various artists comps including this 4CD box set from Proper Records. Here's a video for I-Yi by The Hawks.
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